Crate suspension means



De 1969 B. w. ALLEN, JYRT 36, 3

,CRATE SUSPENSION MEANS Filed Feb. 28. 1968 j v 3 7a 5 2b 7a 20 a 9 7a INVENTOR area/v W ALLEN JR.

' v BY 4 7' TOEA/E Y United States Patent 3,486,783 CRATE SUSPENSION MEANS Byron W. Allen, Jr., 188 S. I St., San Bernardino, Calif. 92402 Filed Feb. 28, 1968, Ser. No. 708,984 Int. Cl. B66c 1/12 US. Cl. 294-74 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A hanger bracket comprising two transversely spaced ears, each provided with a keyhole-shaped opening having a larger, upper clearance opening and a smaller, lower slot, a length of link chain with links that may pass freely through said upper clearance opening and which may fit said slot and be retained against movement through the slot by the links connected to the opposite ends of the link residing in the slot, and loops on the opposite, oppositely directed ends of the chain, adapted to have hooking engagement with projections on the opposite ends of a crate.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide suspension means for heavy, flat crates such as used in the plate glass industry for the safe handling thereof while the same are being transferred to and from storage.

Another object is to provide means, as above characterized, that is applied to a crate with easy facility and is readily adjustable to accommodate crates varying greatly in size.

A further object of the invention is to provide suspension means which may be adjusted to the size of the crate without the aid of tools of any sort, and is self-locking due to the weight of the crate.

This invention also has for its objects to provide such means that are positive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a working position and easily disconnected therefrom, economical of manufacture, relatively simple, and of general superiority and servicea'bility.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present crate suspension means comprises, generally, a hanger bracket 5 adapted to be hung as from a hoist 6 (represented by the hook shown in FIG. 1), and a length of link chain 7 extending across said bracket and having oppositely directed ends, and a sling or loop 8 on each chain end and adapted to be engaged with the opposite end projections 9 of a crate 10. The bracket 5 is provided with transversely spaced means 11 for releasably and adjustably locking the two chain ends, thereby providing for the crate to be hung from the hoist 6.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear in the course of the following description, which is based on the accompanying drawing. However, said drawing merely shows, and the following description merely describes, one embodiment of the present invention, which is given by way of illustration or example only.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawing, like reference characters designate similar parts in the several views.

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view showing the present suspension means operatively engaged with a crate to suspend the same from a hoist.

FIG. '2 is an enlarged front view, partly in section, of the hanger portion of said means.

3,486,783 Patented Dec. 30, 1969 FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view as taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 21..

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The bracket 5 is shown as a number having a back wall 15 that has an upwardly and forwardly offset extension 16 provided with a hole 17 for a ring 18 that is adapted to be engaged by the hoist hook 6. At the opposite side edges, said wall 15 is provided with forwardly extending ears or lugs 19. The offset extension 16 is so formed as to cause the bracket to hang from the ring 18 with the wall 15 substantially vertical.

The chain 7 may be formed as any one of the common link chains in which the alternate links are in coplanar alignment and connecting links are in transverse relatio, as shown in FIG. 2. At each end of said chain is provided a connector ring 20, the mentioned slings or loops 8 being connected one to each said ring 20.

The chain 7 may comprise a single chain length, although the same may comprise two shorter chain lengths, either equal or unequal in length, as desired. It will be clear that, whether a single length or two shorter lengths, the chain 7, in use, has two oppositely, outwardly directed chain ends 7a and two oppositely, inwardly directed and slack chain ends 7 b.

As shown in FIG. 1, the slings or loops 8, of wire cable, rope or cord, when in hooking engagement with the crate end projections 9, together with the chain ends 7a, from Which said slings or loops 8 extend, so engage the ends of the crate as to suspend the latter when the chain 7 is locked, by the means 11, to the bracket 5.

The means 11 is provided in each ear 19. As best seen in FIG. 3, each said means comprises a vertical narrow slot or groove 21 closed at its bottom 22 and opening at its upper end into an enlarged opening 23. It will be seen that the slot 21 and opening 22 combine to form a keyhole, the slot of which is receptive of a link 24 of the chain 7 when entered from the open end thereof, and the opening 23 of which is of a size to freely, transversely pass the links of the chain regardless of the rotated positions of said links. Said grooves 21 and holes 23 are aligned on a common plane, the hole 17 in the extension 16 residing in said plane to produce the mentioned vertical hanging position of the bracket 5.

It will be seen that with the chain 7 held in alignment with the openings 23 of the lugs 19, said chain may be moved longitudinally to increase or decrease the lengths of the outwardly directed ends 7a, resulting in a corresponding decrease or increase of the lengths of inwardly directed chain ends 7b. When the adjusted lengths of ends 7a, whether or not equal, are effected, the chain is allowed to drop so the links 24 thereof that are in register with the slots 21 will fall into said slots, as can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3. Since the links of the chain that are joined to the links in the slots are on opposite sides of the ears and are in transverse relation to the links in the slots and, therefore, have an effective width greater than that of the slots 21, as in FIG. 3, the chain is locked against movement thereof. Hence, a crate 10 hanging from the loops 8 will be suspended in the manner shown in FIG. 1, and as described, from the hoist 6.

Thus hung, the crate may be moved by the hoist to any desired position. Then, by lowering the hoist to form slack in the chain ends 7a, the suspension means may be detached from the crate.

It will be clear that either initially or at any later time, one or 'both chain ends 7a may be adjusted by forming slack in said ends, as above, so the crate may be trimmed to hang as desired.

While the foregoing has illustrated and described what is now contemplated to be the best mode of carrying out the invention, the construction is, of course, subject to modification without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it is not desired to restrict the invention to the particular form of construction illustrated and described, but to cover all modifications that may fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. Suspension means for a crate and the like comprising:

(a) a bracket adapted to be hung from a hoist and provided with two forwardly directed and transversely spaced ears,

(b) a link chain having its alternate links in coplanar alignment and the connecting links in transverse relation, and having oppositely outwardly directed end adapted for separable connection with opposite end portions of said crate,

(c) said ears having substantially aligned openings larger than the links of the chain and freely passing said chain transversely through and between said ears,

(d) each said bracket ear having a vertical narrow slot with a closed bottom extending upwardly and open to each respective opening, and each slot being receptive of a link of said chain with the connecting, transversely related links of each link in the slot disposed on each side of each respective ear and engaging said ears to lock the chain against movement through the ears,

(e) the openings and slots being aligned on a common plane, and

(f) a hanger portion on the bracket provided with a hanger hole substantially midway of the mentioned 4 openings and slots and residing in the mentioned plane. 2. Suspension means according to claim 1, the slot in each ear of the bracket and the portions of the respective ears defining said slots cooperating with the mentioned transversely created chain links to form independent locking means to adjustably lock longitudinally spaced portions of the chain to the bracket.

3. Suspension means according to claim 1 in which (a) a wall connects said ears and extends between the rearward edges thereof, and

(b) a forwardly oifset hoist-engaging portion is provided on the upper end of said wall.

4. Suspension means according to claim 2 in which (a) a wall connects said ears and extends between the rearward edges thereof, and

(b) a forwardly offset hoist-engaging portion is provided on the upper end of said wall.

5. Suspension means according to claim 2 in which the free end of each outwardly directed end of the chain is provided with a sling loop adapted to engage an extension on an end of a crate.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 569,448 10/1896 Dudley 29482 1,326,969 1/1920 Rounds 29478 2,700,568 1/1955 Meili 29478 2,721,757 10/1955 Anderson 294-78 2,820,661 1/1958 Koons et al. 294-78 ANDRES H. NIELSEN, Primary Examiner 

